Devialet 120

[Scooby Blue]

Thanks Derek,

When fully running I will have a LP12 / Aro / Ortofon Rohmann so look forward to how it performs.

Before then I may also get a Niagara 1200 / NRG-Z3 - can’t really afford anything more after recent spending!

[derekcohen]

The faint pulse is still there, but I have to listen hard for it (music off and volume up). This is both with- and without the wifi control app on my iPhone.

As long as the "pulse" is not doing any damage to the LS50 Metas, then it is of little consequence. The sound and clarity off the Supex is a step up from all I have used in the past. I can hear fine detail in the background I did not realise existed.

Incidentally, the amp is set up with firmware 7.1.1

I did try a power cable I made up, which seemed to remove a smidgeon of haze. However, the plug was too large for the back plate to fit. I have ordered a Furutech FI-C15(G) Slimline IEC plug. These fit.

As a matter of curiosity, do Ferrite Core rings have any place here?

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Delija]

Hi SB

 I had been using a Harmon Kardon HK6500 amp (70 wpc and high current), which saw off a Musical Fidelity A3.2. The HK produced a good sound, but the Devialet/Supex lifted the game to another level. Clearer, more detailed, sweeter. 

I also had HK6500 in the past and then HK6950R. Great amps.

[Axel]

The faint pulse is still there, but I have to listen hard for it (music off and volume up). This is both with- and without the wifi control app on my iPhone.

As long as the "pulse" is not doing any damage to the LS50 Metas, then it is of little consequence. The sound and clarity off the Supex is a step up from all I have used in the past. I can hear fine detail in the background I did not realise existed.

Incidentally, the amp is set up with firmware 7.1.1

I did try a power cable I made up, which seemed to remove a smidgeon of haze. However, the plug was too large for the back plate to fit. I have ordered a Furutech FI-C15(G) Slimline IEC plug. These fit.

As a matter of curiosity, do Ferrite Core rings have any place here?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Welcome Derek 🙂. I think @thumb5 is on the right track. Are you using the Configurator to  turn Auto Wi-Fi Standby ON here:    
 as Ian suggested? Or turning off Wi-Fi if you’re not using it? 
I don’t think a small flutter like that will do your speakers any harm, but it can be a bit off-putting when listening to quiet passages of music. 
I hope you enjoy your first forays into Devialet territory. I think you’re in for a treat!

[derekcohen]

Are you using the Configurator to  turn Auto Wi-Fi Standby ON here ... as Ian suggested? Or turning off Wi-Fi if you’re not using it?

Thanks Axel. 

Yes, I did exactly as Ian suggested. In fact, I set up two SD cards, one on and one off. There really was no difference. I am back to using the iPhone app as it is helpful to be able to see the switches made (the remote does not show this). The app works well.

The pulsing was quite noticeable when the amp/Supex was first connected. It seems to have progressively quietened, and now barely audible (with the phono on, sound up, but not music playing). I have no doubt that a MC with a higher output than 0.2mV would be quieter, but I have read here how those with 0.4mV (and even a Hanna with 0.5mV) have struggled. I was contemplating a Hana MH.

This has been a great relief as I like the Supex 900 IV. It has excellent detail and seems a fine match for the system. With the Devialet Expert 120, I am hearing new detail. It seems clearer yet more relaxed. My wife remarked on this. 

Regards from Perth

Derek

[docvale]

One thing you could check is if the noise disappears when you turn the motor of the record player off.

Before I installed an external speed controller for my Pro-Ject, I noticed there was a low volume hum detectable when the phono input was activated, arm lifted and turntable spinning. The speed controller, which in my case induces a series of AC-DC-AC conversions, solved the problem.

[derekcohen]

One thing you could check is if the noise disappears when you turn the motor of the record player off.

Before I installed an external speed controller for my Pro-Ject, I noticed there was a low volume hum detectable when the phono input was activated, arm lifted and turntable spinning. The speed controller, which in my case induces a series of AC-DC-AC conversions, solved the problem.

I tried this. No difference.

Axel's term "flutter" is a good description. My opening loudness setting is the standard -40. The flutter just become audible (very faint) at -31 into the LS50 Metas. 

I asked earlier about ferrite rings. The mains cable into the Devialet is a pretty standard item (one did not come with the amp) but it has a small ferrite ring. It was in use on the Thorens until I realised that the shielded mains cable I had made used an input connector too large to fit under the rear cover of the Devialet. So I swapped them around. I did not do a comparison test, but I thought that the flutter reduced a little after the cable with the ferrite ring was moved to the amp. 

I have been planning to make a few more mains cables (having purchased 15m of shielded cable). I am using a Thor power board for all power plugs.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[disarmamant]

Derek

If you select the phono input on the Devialet amplifier and disconnect the tone arm cable from the inputs, does the fluttering go away?

If so it could be your tone arm cable is not well shielded from RFI/EMI. Also, do you have your broadband WiFi router close by the turntable or amplifier? The WiFi signal from your router could be causing the interference.

I had a similar problem when I was using a moving coil head amplifier into the phono. I had to use a tone arm cable with double shielded cable (Neotech cable) to stop the RFI/EMI.

[derekcohen]

Thanks for this suggestion.

With the amp off, I removed the plugs at the turntable, leaving them connected at the amp. Then switched on the amp and phono connection. There was a hum (which may be expected) but the flutter was gone. Reconnecting the cable to the turntable removed the hum, and the flutter returned at -31.

It sounds like a change of interconnect is advisable? I am presently using one made for me by NB Cables (who also made the speaker cables), a local Australian small company. Recommendations that will not break the bank? I am using Aurealis interconnect between the amp and streamer. Another Aussie with a great reputation. I am tempted in that direction.

Link: https://www.aurealisaudio.com.au/phono-cables/

Regards from Perth

Derek

[thumb5]

From what you describe, it sounds to me more as though the cartridge is picking up the "flutter", rather than the interconnects. Maybe some kind of EMI/RFI? If the cables are shielded and grounded at the amplifier end (using the phono ground point) I'd be surprised if changing them removed the flutter - but these things do sometimes defy logic!

Is there anything else near your turntable which could be using radio signals and might be causing the interference? If you move the cartridge over the playing surface does the flutter change in volume?